Updated 9:19 am, Wednesday, August 7, 2013

Football players Keyshawn Thomas, left, and Erick Cuatzo, try out exercise bikes, part of a large donation of exercise equipment to the Bridgeport high schools by the Jewish Community Center at Central High School in Bridgeport, Conn. on Tuesday, August 6, 2013.
Photo: Brian A. Pounds

A treadmill is moved into the weight room at Central High School in Bridgeport, part of a large donation of exercise equipment by the Jewish Community Center to city high schools, on Tuesday, August 6, 2013.
Photo: Brian A. Pounds

BRIDGEPORT -- When the phone call came, Neil Kavey couldn't say "yes" fast enough. It's not every day when the athletic director for the city's three high schools is asked if he'd like to have a room full of weight and fitness machines for free, but that's exactly what happened.

Steve Wendell, president and CEO of the Jewish Community Center, wanted to know if Kavey would have any interest in the Center's old athletic equipment. The JCC is in the process of closing down its building on Park Avenue and constructing a new facility. Former citywide AD Alan Wallach, a longtime JCC board member, had asked Wendell if he had plans for the old equipment, and when Wendell said he wasn't sure, Wallach suggested donating it all to the city's three high schools.

It was a great idea. And Kavey jumped at it.

"I'm just delighted. This is just incredible," Kavey said. "These are things that I would be hesitant to put a value on. For us, this is like gold. We can't thank Steve Wendell and the JCC people enough. And kudos to Alan Wallach. Alan was instrumental to help make this happen."

A few weeks ago, the first of two major equipment moves to the three high schools took place with the second move happening Tuesday morning. Bassick, Central, Harding and the new Fairchild Wheeler military academy (currently under construction) are all going to split the numerous aerobic machines, spin-bikes, treadmills, elliptical machines, rowing machines and incline bikes, along with all the various weight machines, including shoulder presses, bench presses, pull-down machines and squat racks.

"Basically, the JCC gave us their entire fitness room," Kavey said. "Not only will the athletes be able to use all this equipment but so will the PE kids as well."

"They've given us enough equipment to literally fill all of our high schools' weight rooms," added Superintendent of Schools Paul Vallas. "And this equipment is in very good condition. It's really a great gift. We had been trying to think of ways as to how we might eventually replace some of our obsolete athletic equipment and this is a big surprise."

This donation is something that the three high schools sorely need. When you consider that the entire athletic budget for Bassick, Central and Harding combined is around $1 million total -- compared to $1.2 million for Staples High School and $1.4 million for Darien -- purchasing any kind of fitness machinery would be all but impossible. But thanks to the JCC's gift, now hundreds of Bridgeport athletes will be able to use the equipment.

"We're talking about every athlete in every sport having access to the equipment at all three schools, plus all the PE kids will have access too," Kavey said. "We're just delighted."

So is Wendell, who spent part of the morning at Central watching the equipment being unloaded and seeing several of the Hilltoppers football players smiling and posing for a photographer with the fitness gear.

"We are really happy that the equipment is going to the city of Bridgeport public schools and be used by the teams," Wendell said. "Whatever was in our (fitness) room, we donated. It was like 5,500 square feet of equipment."

Added Vallas: "Literally what happened was overnight, our weight rooms have become state-of-the-art. We've got the kind of equipment that normally you would see in the most affluent suburbs."

And according to Wendell, he's already received dozens of "thank you" emails after the JCC's donation, including one from Bassick varsity football coach Derrick Lewis, who wrote: Steve, On behalf of us all here at Bassick we want to thank you from the bottom of our hearts! What you've done for us these past few weeks may not seem like a big deal, but it is and it will help so many underprivileged youth in our city who have so little!"

"The nice thing is that it's going to help the other sports here as well," Central football coach Brian Gordon said. "Anything that will help us and all the other sports is certainly welcome. It'll get put to good use, believe me."

"This is great stuff," Hilltoppers girls basketball coach Craig Davis said. "Strength and conditioning is such a missed piece that we haven't had in a while. Now we have the equipment and the resources to do some of the things that we haven't been able to do in the past, it puts us in a good position."

And on Tuesday morning, the second transfer of equipment took place as treadmills, spin-bikes, ellipticals and stair-masters were being taken off a truck and wheeled into the Central gym.

"We had only moved like half of the equipment," Wendell said. "And I was speaking with Paul about the donation and the first move and I was telling him that there wasn't any more money to move the rest of the equipment. He said, `I'll make it happen.' And he did, instantly. He made money available to move the rest of the equipment that the coaches were looking for."

"This is more than just a donation," Vallas said. "This is a small miracle."